Northshore magazine showcases the best that the North Shore of Boston, MA has to offer.
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/482452
154 Executive chef Marvin Posada breaks into a wide grin when talk- ing about the beehives on the roof of L'Andana in Burlington. "It takes me back to my childhood," says Po- sada, a native of El Salvador. "Back home, my mom has a tree trunk that is 30 years old" where wild bees have always made honey. "We have honey year-round." L'Andana's hives, which were a suggestion from the restaurant's bee-keeping handyman, now produce about 15 gallons of honey a year. The hyper-local sweetener has inspired a number of menu items, including an appetizer of house-made ricotta cheese topped ZitK Koney anG sKaYeG trXɠes. The honey is also prominently featured on the restaurant's new Sunday brunch menu, which launched last fall. Since opening seven years ago, L'Andana has been augmenting its menu—and beautifying its subur- ban business-corridor location— with plantings that go well beyond a typical kitchen garden, says chef- owner Jamie Mammano. "We've E created a tiny farm where the chef is out there harvesting," says Mammano. "We have apple trees, greens, eggplant, herbs, bees on the roof, fresh tomatoes—it doesn't get any better than that." Posada, responsible for the restaurant's day-to-day operations since becoming executive chef six years ago, has grown the garden from just a few raised beds to about 25, and he draws a lot of inspira- tion from the seasonal array. "I just can't wait to get things in the ground," Posada says. "I love gardening. It's one of the things that keeps me very creative in the spring and summer." 7Ke JarGens fit ZeOO ZitK L'Andana's overall aesthetic—the weathered-wood walls and chan- deliers made from old wine barrels Marvin Posada; Opposite, Omaha Prime beef steak